Normalcy
by jackelgull
Summary: There are cracks in their foundation, too tender to talk about. They begin filling those in one open honest conversation at a time


A/N: Thanks to littlelinguistme for looking at this, I owe you my life

A/N 2: Dedicated to Momo who's like my writing mom and dragged me into this ship. I'm glad I met you.

Shinichi Kudo is a seasoned detective, always ten steps ahead of everyone else, but when it comes to Shiho Miyano , he is forever stumbling over his own feet. So he's not really sure what to do when she asks for him to come over with the faintest hint of panic laced into her words. He's even more out of his element when he arrives at her house only to find her sobbing on the kitchen floor.

"Is everything alright?" Shinichi began hesitantly. He wasn't even sure she would want him to see her like this, maybe he should've just left without saying anything, but something told him she called for him because she needed a friend.

She's rubbing her eyes and trying to return her expression to its usual smirk. If that smirk seems a little too forced, too fragile, well, Shinichi was not going to say anything. He'd still like use of his balls thank you very much. When her features return to some semblance of normality she says, "I was rejected from Tokyo University."

The brakes in Shinichi's head were slammed.

"What?!"

"I was rejected by Tokyo University," she says scowling.

"That's it. That's why your bawling your eyes out", Shinichi says incredulously.

"You don't understand" she cried, "Tokyo University was supposed to be my shot at a normal life. What if after everything I've been through I can't handle that?"

"You're sitting here weeping over being rejected by a university, that seems pretty normal to me" Shinichi replies wryly.

She glares at him. "Tokyo University is supposed to be my safety school Shinichi. I am a certified genius, there shouldn't be a school in the world rejecting me based on grades alone."

"Maybe they made a mistake," Shinichi opined.

"Or maybe they know that deep down inside, I'm a twisted evil person. Maybe the stains of learning from monsters like Gin don't really ever go away and seep into everything I do."

"I highly doubt that, evil doesn't have physical traces, if it did it'd make my job too easy. I thought a chemist would know this. I don't see why you're jumping to that as a reason. Maybe they know you have a collage of every photo taken of Ryusuke Higo, only weirdos do that," he says in a too light tone, trying to masterfully deflect the situation, but instead coming across as the captain of the Titanic desperately trying to steer the ship to safer waters.

He expects to get a rise out of her. He expects her to fight him on this. Instead her face falls and she stares morosely ahead. He's not sure what to do now. Usually he could get her out of her head by now, get her arguing until she returns to healthier headspace. Instead, she's struggling to hold back tears that stubbornly refuse to be unshed.

He drops onto his knees so he is on the floor with her. He gingerly takes out a napkin from his pocket and gently wipes her tears, then he hugs her like he's never letting her go.

He's cradling her head to his chest telling her, "You make no sense woman. You are both the warmest and coldest person I know. You are incredibly kind to Ayumi and the detective boys, and yet you easily cut people down with your gaze daily. You cried when we ran over that stray cat, but didn't hesitate at all to shoot the man threatening Ran. You had the courage to leave the only life you knew, and yet i almost died for you before you could find the courage in you to confess your love to me. All this talk about not being normal, it's just ego. I know you Miyano Shiho, you are a normal woman and I love you."

He holds her to his warmth until she's ready to pick herself up again.

"Thank you" Shiho whispers, "and I'm sorry for being so weak."

Shinichi looks her in the eyes and says gently, "You're really not weak Shiho, you're so much stronger than me. It's just that we don't always get to choose where our armor cracks."

"What do you mean our armor? You're the one running headfirst into dungeons, saving people and slaying dragons, I'm just the chemist here."

It's a weak attempt at their usual banter, but she's trying and that's what matters. He's confident she'll be ok now, that they'll be ok.

He's even more satisfied by her shrieks of joy one week later when it turns out her rejection letter was mistake by the University.


End file.
